Bottle rack

ABSTRACT

A bottle rack includes a panel that has a front surface and an opposing back surface, and support bars cantilevered from the panel and extending from the front surface. Each of the support bars has a linear bottle supporting portion that is positioned, and that is at an acute angle, relative to the front surface such that at least two of the support bars can support a bottle while forcing the bottle against the front surface. The rack may be a “label forward” rack. Additionally, the various joints, grooves, and slots used to join the support bars to the panel may also be used to join any the support bars and panels of any suitable bottle rack.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. § 119(e), this application claims priority to U.S.provisional patent application No. 62/438,964, filed on Dec. 23, 2016,the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure is directed at a bottle rack.

BACKGROUND

Wine bottles are commonly publicly displayed to permit persons to easilyaccess wine and for decorative purposes. One way in which to displaywine bottles is to publicly store them using a bottle rack.

Various types of bottle racks are known in the art. One type of bottlerack is a “label forward” bottle rack, in which bottles are stored suchthat their labels are generally outwardly facing.

SUMMARY

According to a first aspect, there is provided a bottle rack comprisinga panel and support bars. The panel comprises a front surface and anopposing back surface. The support bars are cantilevered from the paneland extend from the front surface. Each of the support bars comprises alinear bottle supporting portion that is positioned, and that is at anacute angle, relative to the front surface such that at least two of thesupport bars can support a bottle while forcing the bottle against thefront surface.

The linear bottle supporting portion may abut the panel.

The linear bottle supporting portion may be spaced from the panel.

The bottle may be a wine bottle and the at least two of the support barsmay be offset from each other such that one of the at least two of thesupport bars is positioned to support the body of the bottle and theother of the at least two of the support bars is positioned to supportthe neck of the bottle such that when the rack is mounted, thelongitudinal axis of the bottle is approximately level.

At least one of the support bars may comprise a panel end and the panelmay comprise a support bar groove that frictionally retains the panelend of the at least one of the support bars.

The panel end may form a non-interlocking joint with the sides of thegroove.

The groove may comprise a cross-section, when viewed along the length ofthe groove, that is a right trapezoid.

The linear bottle supporting portion may abut the panel and the side ofthe right trapezoid not adjacent a right angle of the trapezoid at anangle corresponding to the acute angle.

The linear bottle supporting portion may be spaced from the panel andthe panel end may be shaped such that a portion of the support barabutting the panel is approximately perpendicular relative to the panel.

At least one of the support bars may comprise a panel end and the panelmay comprise a support bar groove. The panel end may form aninterlocking joint with the groove.

The panel end may form a dovetail joint with the sides of the groove andthe panel end may comprise the tail of the dovetail joint.

The linear bottle supporting portion may abut the panel and a bottlesupporting side of the panel end or a bottom side of the panel end maybe linear and aligned with the bottle supporting portion.

The linear bottle supporting portion may be spaced from the panel andthe panel end may be shaped such that a portion of the support barabutting the panel is approximately perpendicular relative to the panel.

At least one of the support bars may comprise a panel end, the panel maycomprise a support bar slot shaped to frictionally retain the panel endof the at least one of the support bars, and the at least one of thesupport bars may be positioned in the support bar slot.

The support bar slot may extend from the front surface through to theback surface.

The panel end may form a non-interlocking joint with the interior of thepanel.

The panel end may comprise a tongue that extends from a body of the atleast one support bar and a portion of at least one side of the supportbar may be absent to form the tongue.

The at least one support bar may comprise a bottle side that faces thebottle when supporting the bottle, and a portion of the at least onesupport bar may be absent from the bottle side to form the tongue.

The at least one support bar may comprise a flat bottle side that facesthe bottle when supporting the bottle, a flat bottom side that isopposite the bottle side, and rounded left and right sides locatedbetween the bottle and bottom sides, and portions of the left and rightsides may be absent to form the tongue.

The tongue may have a square or rectangular cross-section.

The support bar slot may be shaped to receive the tongue and not thebody of the at least one support bar, and the body of the at least onesupport bar may abut the front surface.

The panel end may be linear and aligned with the linear bottlesupporting portion.

The panel end may be linear and non-aligned with the linear bottlesupporting portion.

The panel end may extend perpendicularly relative to the front surface.

One or both of the panel end or the support bar body may comprise afastener bore extending longitudinally along the at least one supportbar and the rack may further comprise a support bar fastener and washer.The support bar fastener may extend through the washer and into thefastener bore of the at least one support bar such that the washer iscompressed against the back surface.

The washer may have a back surface through which the fastener extendsand the back surface may be tapered such that the fastener bore extendsperpendicularly relative to the back surface of the washer.

The linear bottle supporting portion may be at least 7 inches long.

The rack may further comprise wine bottles. Each of the wine bottles maybe up to a 750 mL wine bottle having a body diameter of up to 3½ inchesand at least two of the wine bottles may be supported using one pair ofthe support bars.

According to another aspect, there is provided a bottle rack comprisinga panel and support bars. The panel comprises a front surface. Thesupport bars are cantilevered from and extend approximatelyperpendicularly from the front surface. At least one of the support barscomprises a panel end and the panel comprises a support bar groove. Thepanel end forms an interlocking joint with the groove. The support barsare suitable to support bottles therebetween from the panel to ends ofthe support bars spaced from the panel such that the longitudinal axisof each of the bottles is approximately parallel to the support bars.

The support bars may comprise bottle supporting portions used to supportthe bottles. The bottle supporting portions may or may not be linear,and may or may not comprise the entirety of the support bars thatprotrude from the panel. The bottle supporting portions may abut thepanel or be spaced from the panel.

The bottle may be a wine bottle and the at least two of the support barsmay be offset from each other such that one of the at least two of thesupport bars is positioned to support the body of the bottle and theother of the at least two of the support bars is positioned to supportthe neck of the bottle such that when the rack is mounted, thelongitudinal axis of the bottle is approximately level.

The support bar groove may frictionally retain the panel end of the atleast one of the support bars.

The groove may comprise a cross-section, when viewed along the length ofthe groove, that is a right trapezoid.

The bottle supporting portion may abut the panel and the side of theright trapezoid not adjacent a right angle of the trapezoid at an anglecorresponding to the acute angle.

The bottle supporting portion may be spaced from the panel and the panelend may be shaped such that a portion of the support bar abutting thepanel is approximately perpendicular relative to the panel.

The panel end may form a dovetail joint with the sides of the groove andthe panel end may comprise the tail of the dovetail joint.

The bottle supporting portion may abut the panel and a bottle supportingside of the panel end or a bottom side of the panel end may be linearand aligned with the bottle supporting portion.

At least one of the support bars may comprise a panel end, the panel maycomprise a support bar slot shaped to frictionally retain the panel endof the at least one of the support bars, and the at least one of thesupport bars may be positioned in the support bar slot. The support barslot may extend from the front surface through to the back surface. Thepanel end when inserted into one of the slots may form anon-interlocking joint with the interior of the panel.

The panel end may comprise a tongue that extends from a body of the atleast one support bar and a portion of at least one side of the supportbar may be absent to form the tongue.

The at least one support bar may comprise a bottle side that faces thebottle when supporting the bottle, and a portion of the at least onesupport bar may be absent from the bottle side to form the tongue.

The at least one support bar may comprise a flat bottle side that facesthe bottle when supporting the bottle, a flat bottom side that isopposite the bottle side, and rounded left and right sides locatedbetween the bottle and bottom sides, and portions of the left and rightsides may be absent to form the tongue.

The tongue may have a square or rectangular cross-section.

The support bar slot may be shaped to receive the tongue and not thebody of the at least one support bar, and the body of the at least onesupport bar may abut the front surface.

The panel end may extend perpendicularly relative to the front surface.

One or both of the panel end and the support bar body may comprise afastener bore extending longitudinally along the at least one supportbar and the rack may further comprise a support bar fastener and washer.The support bar fastener may extends through the washer and into thefastener bore of the at least one support bar such that the washer iscompressed against the back surface.

The washer may have a back surface through which the fastener extendsand the back surface may be tapered such that the fastener bore extendsperpendicularly relative to the back surface of the washer.

The rack may further comprise wine bottles. Each of the wine bottles maybe up to a 750 mL wine bottle having a body diameter of up to 3½ inchesand at least two of the wine bottles may be supported using one pair ofthe support bars.

This summary does not necessarily describe the entire scope of allaspects. Other aspects, features and advantages will be apparent tothose of ordinary skill in the art upon review of the followingdescription of specific embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate one or more exampleembodiments:

FIGS. 1A-1C are perspective, right side elevation, and front elevationviews of a bottle rack, according to first and second embodiments.

FIG. 2 is a front elevation view of a panel comprising part of thebottle rack of the first embodiment.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are perspective and right side elevation views of asupport bar comprising part of the bottle rack of the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the bottle rack of the first embodimentshowing a section of the panel of FIG. 2 and a pair of the support barsof FIGS. 3A and 3B.

FIG. 5 is a front elevation view of a panel comprising part of thebottle rack of the second embodiment.

FIGS. 6A and 6B are perspective and right side elevation views of asupport bar comprising part of the bottle rack of the second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the bottle rack of the second embodimentshowing a section of the panel of FIG. 5 and a pair of the support barsof FIGS. 6A and 6B.

FIG. 8 is a front elevation view of the bottle rack according to a thirdembodiment.

FIGS. 9-11 are sectional views of the bottle rack according to fourththrough sixth embodiments.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a support bar comprising part of thebottle rack of a seventh embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

One example of a “label forward” bottle rack is a rack in which supportbars are attached to and extend perpendicularly from a wall. The supportbars comprise recessed portions sized to receive a predetermined type ofwine bottle. The longitudinal axes of the bottles stored on the winerack extend parallel to the wall such that the bottles' labels areoutwardly facing and are level relative to the floor.

This conventional type of label forward bottle rack suffers from severalproblems. For example, the recessed portions on the support bars aresized to fit only a predetermined type of wine bottle. Should a userwish to store a different type of wine bottle that is differently sized,the user may need to replace the rack's existing support bars with newsupport bars having differently sized recessed portions. Further, if thesupport bars are used to store multiple bottles, bottles stored fartherfrom the wall may completely obstruct the user's view of the labels ofbottles stored on the same support bars nearer to the wall. Anotherissue with conventional label forward bottle racks is that usingperpendicularly extending support bars is relatively space inefficient,particularly since only the recessed portions of those bars are used todirectly support the bottles; space is wasted by virtue of the fact thatthe bottles are not stacked on each other and that non-recessed portionsof the support bars are not used to support bottles. Additionally, thecurved recessed portions of the support bars used in conventional labelforward wine racks make transporting them relatively awkward andinefficient given the amount of volume they require for shipping.

Various embodiments described herein address at least some of theseissues. The depicted embodiments comprise a panel comprising a frontsurface and an opposing back surface, and support bars cantilevered fromthe panel that extend from the front surface. Each of the support barscomprises a linear bottle supporting portion that is positioned, andthat is at an acute angle, relative to the panel's front surface suchthat at least two of the support bars can support a bottle while forcingthe bottle against the panel's front surface. In the depictedembodiments, the entire portion of the support bars extending from thepanel is linear. This permits relatively space efficient wine storageand rack transport. Furthermore, when the same support bars are used tostore multiple bottles, those bottles are stacked on each other becausethe support bars are positioned at an angle. This permits the labels ofall of the bottles stored using the depicted racks to always at least bepartially visible to a typical user.

Referring now to FIGS. 1A-1C, there are shown perspective, right sideelevation, and front elevation views of a bottle rack 100 according tofirst and second embodiments. The rack 100 comprises a panel 104 that isrectangular and that has on its left and right sides mounting brackets102 configured to mount the rack 100 to a mounting surface, such as awall. An example type of bracket 102 that may be used is any one of thebrackets 102 described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,149,115, the entirety of whichis hereby incorporated by reference. The rack 100 also comprises supportbars 108 that are cantilevered from the panel 104 and that comprise alinear bottle supporting portion 112 (not labeled in FIGS. 1A-1C, butlabeled in FIGS. 3A, 3B, 6A, and 6B) that are inclined to form an acuteangle with the panel's 104 front surface 106. A first bottle B placed inthis acute angle rolls towards the front surface 106 and is pressedagainst the front surface 106 by the support bars 108 and, moreparticularly, by the bottle supporting portions 112. Subsequent bottlesB stored on the same support bars 108 roll towards and rest againstbottles B already resting on those bars 108 and are indirectly pressedagainst the front surface 106.

In the depicted embodiments, the linear bottle supporting portion 112comprises approximately all of the exposed portion of the support bar108 when the rack 100 is assembled, and the bottle supporting portion112 abuts against the front surface 106 of the rack 100. As discussed infurther detail below, in different embodiments the exposed portions ofthe support bars 108 may comprise portions that exclude the linearbottle supporting portions 112.

The depicted embodiments of the rack 100 are for storing wine bottles inparticular. Consequently, at least two of the support bars 108 areoffset from each other such that one of the at least two of the supportbars 108 is positioned to support the bodies of the bottles B and theother of the at least two of the support bars 108 is positioned tosupport the necks of the bottles B. As shown in the depictedembodiments, the support bars 108 may be offset such that when the rack100 is mounted to the wall, the longitudinal axes of the bottles B areapproximately level. In different embodiments and in particular when therack 100 is not designed for wine bottles, pairs of the support bars 108may be differently offset from each other or not offset from each otherat all. For example, in one non-depicted embodiment the support bars 108may be offset such that the longitudinal axes of the bottles B, andaccordingly the necks of the bottles B, are angled downwards.

FIGS. 2-4 are directed at the first embodiment of the rack 100. Moreparticularly, FIG. 2 shows a front elevation view of the panel 104 inisolation, FIGS. 3A and 3B show perspective and side elevation views ofthe support bar 108, and FIG. 4 shows a sectional view of the rack 100.Each of the support bars 108 of the first embodiment comprises a panelend 114, and the panel 104 comprises support bar slots 110 each shapedto frictionally retain the panel end 114 of one of the support bars 108.

In the first embodiment, each of the support bars 108 comprises thepanel end 114 and the linear bottle supporting portion 112. The panelend 114 comprises a tongue that extends from a body of the support bar108, which in the depicted embodiment corresponds to the bottlesupporting portion 112. Each of the support bars 108 comprises a bottleside that faces the bottle B when supporting the bottle B, and a portionof the support bar 108 is absent from the bottle side to form thetongue. This portion of the support bar 108 may be removed throughmachining. In a non-depicted embodiment, a different portion of thesupport bar 108 may be absent; for example, one or more portions of thesupport bar 108 may be missing from any one or more of the bottle side,the side opposite the bottle side (the “bottom side”), or one or both ofthe sides between the bottle and bottom sides (“left and right sides”).For example, FIG. 12 depicts an embodiment in which the left and rightsides are removed such that the tongue has a rectangular cross-section.In a non-depicted embodiment, the tongue may have a squarecross-section, or a cross-section of any other suitable shape formed byremoving portions of any one or more of the top, bottom, left, and rightsides of the panel end 114. Each of the slots 110 has a constantcross-section that is approximately identical to the cross-section ofthe tongue and is thereby shaped to receive and frictionally retain thetongue. The support bar slot 110 extends through the entire panel 104(i.e., from the front surface 106 to the back surface), and the tongueextends through approximately the entire slot 110 and approximatelyfills the slot 110.

As the support bar slots 110 have a smaller cross-section than the bodyof the support bar 108, which in the depicted embodiment corresponds tothe bottle supporting portion 112, the slots 110 do not receive thebottle supporting portions 112. Instead, the bottle supporting portions112 abut against the front surface 106.

A back surface of the panel end 114 of each of the support bars 108comprises a fastener bore 116 extending longitudinally along the supportbar 108. In different embodiments (not depicted), the support bar 108may additionally or alternatively comprise a fastener bore 116 in thebody of the support bar 108 so that the fastener 118 is directlyinserted into the body. The tongue may comprise another of the bores 116or may lack the bore 116. The rack 100 also comprises support barfasteners 118 and washers 120. Each of the fasteners 118 extends throughone of the washers 120 and into the fastener bore 116 of one of thesupport bars 108 such that the washer 120 is compressed against thepanel's 104 back surface. For example, in embodiments in which thefastener 118 is a screw, the screw may be screwed into the bore 116until the washer 120 is compressed and the bar 108 is thereby secured.

As shown in FIG. 4, the washer 120 in FIG. 4 has a back surface oppositethe surface of the washer 120 that abuts against the panel's 104 backsurface and through which the fastener 118 extends that is tapered suchthat the fastener bore 116 extends perpendicularly relative to the backsurface of the washer 120. This has the effect of increasing the amountof the washer 120 the fastener 118 extends through and of making theback surface of the washer 120 perpendicular to the fastener 118,thereby facilitating insertion of the fastener 118 into the bore 116. Ina non-depicted embodiment, the washer 120 may be tapered differently, ormay not be tapered at all.

While one embodiment of the fastener 118 is described as a screw above,different types of fasteners (e.g., a nail) may be used. Furthermore,one or more of the fasteners 118 may be used to secure a single one ofthe support bars 108 to the panel 104.

In the first embodiment, the panel end 114 of each of the support bars108 is linear and aligned with the linear bottle supporting portion 112.In an embodiment in which the bar 108 comprises only the panel end 114and the bottle supporting portion 112, this means the entire bar 108 islinear.

Referring now to FIGS. 5-7, there is shown the second embodiment of therack 100. More particularly, FIG. 5 shows a front elevation view of thepanel 104 in isolation, FIGS. 6A and 6B show perspective and sideelevation views of the support bar 108, and FIG. 7 shows a sectionalview of the rack 100. Each of the support bars 108 of the secondembodiment comprises a panel end 114, and the panel 104 comprisessupport bar slots 110 each shaped to frictionally retain the panel end114 of one of the support bars 108.

In the second embodiment, each of the support bars 108 comprises thepanel end 114 and the linear bottle supporting portion 112. However,unlike in the first embodiment the bottle supporting portion 112 and thepanel end 114 have identical cross sections. The support bar 108 is bentat the junction between the bottle supporting portion 112 and the panelend 114 and consequently the panel end 114 of each of the support bars108 is linear and is non-aligned with the linear bottle supportingportion 112.

The panel 104 comprises support bar slots 104, each of which has across-sectional area approximately identical to the cross-section of thepanel end 114 and is thereby shaped to receive and frictionally retainone of the panel ends 114. In the depicted embodiment the support barslot 110 extends through the entire panel 104 (i.e., from the frontsurface 106 to the back surface), and the slot 110 extendsperpendicularly to the front surface 106. As discussed in further detailbelow, in another embodiment the support bar slot 110 need not extendthrough the entire panel 104. The panel ends 114 of the bars 108 havelengths corresponding to the thickness of the panel 104 so that the bar108 does not protrude past the back surface of the panel 104. Anadhesive may be used to help secure the bars 108 in the panel 104.Alternatively, the fasteners 118 may be used to secure the bars 108 in amanner similar to the first embodiment.

Referring now to FIGS. 8-11, there are shown third through sixthembodiments of the rack 100. As in the embodiment of FIG. 1, in FIG. 8the rack 100 comprises the panel 104, support bars 108, and brackets 102used to mount the rack 100 to a wall. In contrast to FIG. 1, each of thesupport bars 108 is inserted into one of four grooves 122 instead of oneof the slots 110. As discussed in respect of FIGS. 9 and 10, thestructure of the grooves 122 may vary with different embodiments of therack 100. Also, as described in respect of FIG. 11 below, depending onthe embodiment the bars 108 may be inserted into the grooves 122 fromthe front of the panel 104 (i.e., entering the groove 122 by crossingthe front surface 106) or by being slid into the grooves 122 from thesides of the panel 104. While the rack 100 of FIG. 8 comprises four ofthe grooves 122, in different embodiments (not depicted) the panel 104may comprise a different number of the grooves 122 that may be used incombination with the slots 110 or another mechanism for retaining thebars 108. For example, the panel 104 may comprise grooves 122 to retainthe support bars 108 that support bottle bodies and slots 110 to retainthe support bars 108 that support bottle necks.

In FIG. 9, there is shown a sectional view of a fourth embodiment of therack 100 in which portions of some of the support bars 108 that abut thefront surface 106 extend perpendicularly from the panel 104, an exampleof which is depicted as the higher bar 108 in FIG. 9, and in whichportions of some of the support bars 108 that abut the front surface 106are inclined relative to the panel 104, also as depicted in FIG. 8 andan example of which is shown as the lower bar 108 in FIG. 9. The groove122 is shaped to frictionally retain the panel end 114 of the top bar108. That is, the groove 122 has a height that is approximately equal tothe height of the panel end 114, thereby facilitating a frictional fitbetween the bar 108 and the panel 104. The panel end 114 of the higherbar 108 comprises the bore 116 and receives the fastener 118, whichcompresses the washer 120 against the back side of the panel 104 asdescribed in respect of FIG. 4.

The groove 122 used to retain the lower bar 108 in FIG. 9 is angled atthe acute angle that the lower bar 108 makes with respect to the panel's104 front surface 106 and is similarly sized to frictionally retain thepanel end 114 of the lower bar 108. The panel end 114 of the higher bar108 comprises the bore 116 and receives the fastener 118, whichcompresses the washer 120 against the back side of the panel 104 asdescribed in respect of FIG. 4. As the lower bar 108 is angled, the backside of the washer 120 is tapered as it is in FIG. 4.

While the grooves 122 are used to retain the bars 108 in the embodimentof FIG. 9, in a different embodiment the slots 110 may be used to retainthe bars 108 since the panel ends 114 and grooves 122 are shaped topermit the panel ends 114 to be inserted into the grooves 122 from thefront of the panel 104 by crossing from one side of the front surface106 to the other, as well as slid along the grooves 122 from the panel's104 sides. In FIG. 9, the panel ends 110 and the grooves 122collectively form a non-interlocking joint and are secured togetherusing the fastener 118. By “non-interlocking joint”, it is meant a jointthat, when unsecured by the fastener 118, permits the support bar 108 tobe pulled out of the groove 122 by having the panel end 114 cross frombehind the front surface 106 to in front of the front surface 106 (i.e.,in the depicted embodiment, without having to slide the bar 108 out ofthe groove 122 via the side of the panel 104).

For each of the support bars 108, the non-interlocking joint formed bythe panel end 114 and groove 122 in FIG. 9 is formed by having the panelend 114 abut against the sides of the grooves 122. More specifically, inFIG. 9 the panel end 114 abuts against the top, back, and bottom sidesof the groove 122. In different embodiments (not depicted), however,different structures are possible. For example, a portion of the panelends 114 may abut against the sides of the groove 122 while anotherportion, such as at least part the panel ends' 114 back surface, may beexposed via the back of the panel 104. In embodiments in which the backsurface of the panel end 114 is exposed in this way, that portion maymake direct contact with one or both of the head of a screw (when ascrew is used as the fastener 118) and the washers 120, as depicted inFIG. 4. As another example, the entire back surface of the panel end 114may be exposed via the panel's 104 back surface, as shown in FIG. 7. Asanother example, instead of the panel end 114 contacting all the sidesof the groove 122 as shown in FIG. 9, the panel end 114 may contact onlysome or one of the sides of the groove 122 (e.g., only the back side).

Referring now to FIG. 10, there is shown a sectional view of a fifthembodiment of the rack 100 in which portions of some of the support bars108 that abut the front surface 106 extend perpendicularly from thepanel 104, an example of which is depicted as the higher bar 108 in FIG.10, and in which portions of some of the support bars 108 that abut thefront surface 106 are inclined relative to the panel 104, also asdepicted in FIG. 8 and an example of which is shown as the lower bar 108in FIG. 10. In contrast with the embodiment of FIG. 9, the joints usedin FIG. 10 are shaped such that the panel ends 114 need to be slid alongthe grooves 122 to the their proper location on the panel 104 as opposedto inserted into the grooves 122 as is possible in FIG. 9. While anysuitable interlocking joint may be used, the embodiment of FIG. 10 usesa type of dovetail joint. The grooves 122 are identically shaped forboth the higher and lower bars 108. However, the panel ends 114,comprising the tails of the dovetail joints, of the higher and lowerbars 108 are differently shaped. For the higher bar 108, the panel end114 is symmetrical and shaped so that the portion of the bar 108 thatabuts against the front surface 106 projects perpendicularly from thefront surface 106. For the lower bar 108, the panel end 114 isasymmetrical. More particularly, the bottle side of the panel end 114 isidentical to the bottle side of the panel end 114 of the higher bar 108,but the bottom side of the panel end 114 is linear. The angle of theintersection between the tail and socket of the dovetail joint of thelower bar 108 relative to the panel surface 106 corresponds to the acuteangle at which the lower bar 108 is inclined relative to the surface106.

In certain embodiments that use an interlocking joint such as thedovetail joint of FIG. 10, the interlocking joint permits the panel 104and support bars 112 to support the bottles B without using thefasteners 118. Accordingly, in those embodiments the risk of the bottlesB falling and breaking due to the fasteners 118 failing is reduced.Additionally, since the fasteners 118 are not required for substantialload bearing in those embodiments, the support bars 108 may be madethinner relative to embodiments in which the fasteners 118 are used forload bearing, because the diameter of the fastener bore 116 may be madethinner than in embodiments in which the fasteners 118 are required tobear load. This may result in a significant savings of materials andweight for the support bars 112.

Additionally, in certain embodiments that use an interlocking joint suchas the dovetail joint of FIG. 10, the panel 104 itself may be madethinner than in embodiments in which the panel 104 is used incombination with non-interlocking joints without the fasteners 118. Inembodiments in which the panel 104 is used in combination withnon-interlocking joints without the fasteners 118, the panel 104 is maderelatively thick to support the bars 108. However, in embodimentscomprising the interlocking joint, the panel 104 may be made thinnerwithout compromising the rack's 100 structural integrity. This mayresult in significant materials and weight savings.

Referring now to FIG. 11, there is shown a sectional view of a sixthembodiment of the rack 100 in which portions of some of the support bars108 that abut the front surface 106 extend perpendicularly from thepanel 104, an example of which is depicted as the higher bar 108 in FIG.11, and in which portions of some of the support bars 108 that abut thefront surface 106 are inclined relative to the panel 104, also asdepicted in FIG. 8 and an example of which is shown as the lower bar 108in FIG. 11. As with FIG. 9, while the grooves 122 are used to retain thebars 108 in FIG. 11, in a different embodiment the slots 110 may be usedto retain the bars 108 since the panel ends 114 and grooves 122 areshaped to permit the panel ends 114 to be inserted into the grooves 122from the front of the panel 104 by crossing from one side of the frontsurface 106 to the other, as well as inserted into the grooves 122 fromthe panel's 104 sides and slid to their final positions. In FIG. 11, thepanel ends 110 and the grooves 122 collectively form a non-interlockingjoint and are secured together using the fastener 118. The grooves 122have a right trapezoidal cross-section when viewed along their lengths,with the angle of the only side of the trapezoid not adjacent a rightangle corresponding to the angle that the lower bar 108 makes relativeto the front surface 104. The bottle side of the lower bar 108 islinear. For the higher bar 108, the bottle side of the panel end 114 hasa portion absent from it that permits the portion of the bar 108abutting the front surface 104 to extend perpendicularly therefrom.

In each of FIGS. 9-11, the inclined bottle supporting portion 112 of thelower bar 108 abuts against the panel's 104 front surface 106, while theinclined bottle supporting portion 112 of the higher bar 108 is spacedfrom the panel 104. The higher bars 108 in these embodiments compriseanother segment between the inclined bottle supporting portion 108 andthe panel end 114 that is linear and that perpendicularly extends fromthe panel 104; in different embodiments (not depicted), this additionalsegment may be non-linear, may extend non-perpendicularly from the panel104, or both. In certain embodiments, this additional segment causes thebottle supporting portion 108 to be spaced by less than a diameter ofthe body of the bottle B for which the rack 100 is designed.Consequently, the bottle supporting portion 112 is still positioned tocontact the bottle's B body and press it against the front surface 106when the bottle B is resting in the acute angle between the bottlesupporting portion 112 and the front surface 106, as occurs in thedepicted embodiments.

The rack 100 may be sized to hold multiple bottles of various sizes. Forexample, the support bars 108 may be made sufficiently long to hold one,two, three, or more split bottles (2″-2⅜″ body diameter), Bordeauxbottles (2⅞″-3¼″ body diameter), Champagne bottles (3½″ body diameter),Burgundy bottles (3¼″ body diameter), large Pinot bottles (3⅜″ bodydiameter), Turley bottles (3 9/16″ body diameter), or magnum bottles(4″-4½″ body diameter). For example, to hold at least three magnumbottles, the bottle supporting portions 112 of the depicted embodimentsshould be at least 12 inches long, and in certain embodiments longerdepending on the angle the bottle supporting portions 112 make with thefront surface 106. In another embodiment, the support bars 108 are atleast 7 inches long.

While certain embodiments are depicted in the figures and certainnon-depicted embodiments are described above, additional non-depictedembodiments are possible.

For example, while the panel 104 shown in the depicted embodiments isrectangular, in non-depicted embodiments the panel 104 may bedifferently shaped. For example, the panel 104 may be shaped as adifferent type of polygon, such as a square, or may be irregularlyshaped. In those embodiments, the brackets 102 may be affixed alongportions of the periphery of the panel 104.

As another example, in all of the depicted embodiments comprising thegroove 122 or slots 110, the support bars 108 may be fastened to thepanel 104 without using the washer 120.

In another non-depicted embodiment, the support bar slots 110 may notextend all the way through the panel 104; that is, the slots 110 may notextend from the front surface 106 to the panel 104's back surface asdepicted in FIGS. 4 and 7. Instead, the slots 110 may extend onlypartially through the panel 104, thereby causing the panel ends 114 ofthe support bars 108 to abut against the interior of the panel 104. Thesupport bars 108 may be frictionally retained by the panel 104, retainedusing the fasteners 118 with or without the washers 120, or both. In arelated, non-depicted embodiment, the slots 110 may extend through theentire panel 104, but the support bars 108 may not.

The embodiments depicted in FIGS. 2-4 and 9-11 use the washer 120 andfastener 118 to secure the bars 108 to the panel 104, while theembodiment depicted in FIGS. 5-7 uses one or both of a friction fit andan adhesive to secure the bars 108 to the panel 104. However, innon-depicted embodiments, the embodiments of FIGS. 2-4 and 9-11 may useone or both of a friction fit and an adhesive to secure the bars 108,and the embodiment of FIGS. 5-7 may use the fastener 118, the fastener118 and the washer 120, multiple fasteners 118, or multiple fasteners118 and one or more washers 120, with one or more bores 116 beingmachined into the panel ends 114 accordingly.

The various joints used to affix the panel ends 114 to the panel 104 aredescribed in conjunction with support bars 108 that have a linearportion that make an acute angle relative to the panel's 104 frontsurface 106. However, in different embodiments, any of the jointsdescribed herein may be used to affix any type of support bar 108 to anytype of panel 104 for any type of bottle rack 100. For example, thejoints may be used to affix support bars 108 that do not comprise alinear portion making an acute angle with the front surface 106, such asthose described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,149,115.

In embodiments comprising the slots 110, the panel ends 114 need notfill all or approximately all of the bar slots 110. For example, thepanel ends 114 may be rectangular or square in cross section as depictedin the embodiment of FIG. 12, while the slots 110 may correspondingly berectangular or square and further comprise semicircular portions, withone semicircular portion attached to each of the left and right sides ofthe slots 110 such that the slots 110 have rounded sides. Thesemicircular portions need not be filled by the panel ends 114.

In another non-depicted embodiment, the support bar 108 body portion andpanel end 114 may be two distinct pieces that are releasably couplableto each other or able to be affixed to each other using a screw or othertype of fastener. A portion of one of the body portion and panel end 114may comprise a protrusion and a portion of the other of the body portionand panel end 114 may comprise a correspondingly shaped socket toreceive the protrusion. The protrusion and socket may be sized so thatthe socket frictionally retains the protrusion.

Directional terms such as “top”, “bottom”, “up”, “down”, “front”, and“back” are used in this disclosure for the purpose of providing relativereference only, and are not intended to suggest any limitations on howany article is to be positioned during use, or to be mounted in anassembly or relative to an environment. The term “affix” and similarterms, and variants of them, as used in this disclosure are intended toinclude indirect and direct connections unless otherwise indicated. Forexample, if a first article is affixed to a second article, thataffixing may be through a direct connection or through an indirectconnection via another article. Additionally, the singular forms “a”,“an”, and “the” as used in this disclosure are intended to include theplural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.Further, as used herein a first object “abuts” against a second objectwhen the first object borders on or touches the second object.

The word “approximately” as used in this description in conjunction witha number or metric means within 5% of that number or metric.

It is contemplated that any feature of any aspect or embodimentdiscussed in this specification can be implemented or combined with anyfeature of any other aspect or embodiment discussed in thisspecification, except where those features have been explicitlydescribed as mutually exclusive alternatives.

While particular embodiments have been described in the foregoing, it isto be understood that other embodiments are possible and are intended tobe included herein. It will be clear to any person skilled in the artthat modifications of and adjustments to the foregoing embodiments, notshown, are possible.

1. A bottle rack, comprising: (a) a panel comprising a front surface andan opposing back surface; (b) support bars cantilevered from the paneland extending from the front surface, wherein each of the support barscomprises a linear bottle supporting portion that is positioned, andthat is at an acute angle, relative to the front surface such that atleast two of the support bars can support a bottle while forcing thebottle against the front surface; (c) wherein the at least two of thesupport bars are offset from each other such that, in use, one of the atleast two of the support bars is positioned to support a body of thebottle and the other of the at least two of the support bars ispositioned to support a neck of the bottle such that, when the rack ismounted, the longitudinal axis of the bottle is approximately level,wherein the at least two of the support bars are separated from eachother by at least 6 inches, and wherein, in use, the bottle is a 750 mLwine bottle; and (d) wherein at least one of the support bars comprisesa panel end, the panel comprises a support bar slot shaped tofrictionally retain the panel end of the at least one of the supportbars, and the at least one of the support bars is positioned in thesupport bar slot, wherein the panel end comprises a tongue that extendsfrom a body of the at least one of the support bars and a portion of atleast one side of the at least one of the support bars is absent to formthe tongue, wherein the support bar slot is shaped to receive the tongueand not the body of the at least one of the support bars, and the bodyof the at least one of the support bars abuts the front surface of thepanel.
 2. The rack of claim 1 wherein the linear bottle supportingportion abuts the panel.
 3. The rack of claim 1 wherein the linearbottle supporting portion is spaced from the panel.
 4. (canceled)
 5. Therack of claim 1 wherein at least one of the support bars comprises apanel end and the panel comprises a support bar groove that frictionallyretains the panel end of the at least one of the support bars.
 6. Therack of claim 5 wherein the panel end forms a non-interlocking jointwith the sides of the groove.
 7. The rack of claim 6 wherein the groovehas a cross-section, when viewed along the length of the groove, that isa right trapezoid.
 8. The rack of claim 7 wherein the linear bottlesupporting portion abuts the panel and the side of the right trapezoidnot adjacent a right angle of the trapezoid is at an angle correspondingto the acute angle.
 9. The rack of claim 7 wherein the linear bottlesupporting portion is spaced from the panel and the panel end is shapedsuch that a portion of the support bar abutting the panel isapproximately perpendicular relative to the panel.
 10. The rack of claim1 wherein at least one of the support bars comprises a panel end and thepanel comprises a support bar groove, the panel end forming aninterlocking joint with the groove.
 11. The rack of claim 10 wherein thepanel end forms a dovetail joint with the sides of the groove and thepanel end comprises the tail of the dovetail joint.
 12. The rack ofclaim 11 wherein the linear bottle supporting portion abuts the paneland a bottle supporting side of the panel end or a bottom side of thepanel end is linear and aligned with the bottle supporting portion. 13.The rack of claim 11 wherein the linear bottle supporting portion isspaced from the panel and the panel end is shaped such that a portion ofthe support bar abutting the panel is approximately perpendicularrelative to the panel.
 14. (canceled)
 15. The rack of claim 1 whereinthe support bar slot extends from the front surface through to the backsurface.
 16. The rack of claim 1 wherein panel end forms anon-interlocking joint with the interior of the panel.
 17. (canceled)18. The rack of claim 1 wherein the at least one support bar comprises abottle side that faces the bottle when supporting the bottle, and aportion of the at least one support bar is absent from the bottle sideto form the tongue.
 19. The rack of claim 1 wherein the at least onesupport bar comprises a flat bottle side that faces the bottle whensupporting the bottle, a flat bottom side that is opposite the bottleside, and rounded left and right sides located between the bottle andbottom sides, and wherein portions of the left and right sides areabsent to form the tongue.
 20. The rack of claim 19 wherein the tonguehas a square or rectangular cross-section.
 21. (canceled)
 22. The rackof claim 5 wherein the panel end is linear and aligned with the linearbottle supporting portion.
 23. The rack of claim 5 wherein the panel endis linear and is nonaligned with the linear bottle supporting portion.24. The rack of claim 23 wherein the panel end extends perpendicularlyrelative to the front surface.
 25. The rack of claim 15 wherein thepanel end comprises a fastener bore extending longitudinally along theat least one support bar and the rack further comprises a support barfastener and washer, wherein the support bar fastener extends throughthe washer and into the fastener bore of the at least one support barsuch that the washer is compressed against the back surface.
 26. Therack of claim 25 wherein the washer has a back surface through which thefastener extends and the back surface is tapered such that the fastenerbore extends perpendicularly relative to the back surface of the washer.27. The rack of claim 1 wherein the linear bottle supporting portion isat least 7 inches long.
 28. The rack of claim 1 further comprising winebottles, wherein each of the wine bottles is up to a 750 mL wine bottlehaving a body diameter of up to 3½ inches and at least two of the winebottles are supported using one pair of the support bars.